Mechanical nurse



May 1, 1923. 1,453,937

R. N. HARRISON MECHANICAL NURSE Filed Oct. ll. 1921 3 SheetsLSheet l May1, 1923. 1,453,937 R. N. HARRISON Y MECHANICAL NURSE 'Filed oct. 11,1921 .3 sheets-sheet 2 May 1, l1923. 1,453,937

` R. N. HARRISON MECHANICAL NURSE Filed oct. 11. 1921 :s sheetssheetITO: ne l',

Patented May l, 1923.

unirse stares einen REUBEN 1v. HARRISON, or rrefiivs nisfrnicr,VIRGINIA. i

MECHANICAL' NURSE.

Application filed @ctcber 1.1, 1921. SeralvNo. 507,()712.

T 0 all w71 om t may concern.'

Be it known that I, RnUnnN N. HAiiiiIsoN, a citizen of the UnitedStates. residingv at Moore Land Hall, Plains District, in the county ofRockingham and State ot Virginia, have invented a new and useful Mechanicalv Nurse, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to devices adapted to be placed at the bedsideoli' those temporarily confined as well as invalide and be readilyaccessible, and in a sinall way serve as a substitute for an orderly orattendant; the invention being more particularly an invalids combinationdesk having a reading# rack, typewriter-stand or table, pigeonvhole tilecabinet, closets, mirror and the like, constituting parts thereof. y

The invention is particularly designed Iand recommended for 'thosetemporarily chronically confined to bed, incapacitated to the extent or"having the use ot only one arm or not capable ot turning` over in Irlthe invention being ofunmeasurable uti y to those not financially ableto provide the constant service of an attendant and who would beotherwise in a helpless condition.

The` invention consists in the combined arrangement of a cabinet, havingcompartments adapted for the reception ot various and sundry articles,having an interchangeable reading rack, typewriter-stand or table,mirro-r and thelike vadapted to he pivoted thereabourt and easilybrought into position over the bedrwith only ,the slightest effort onthe part of the person using the saine and by the use of which theconstant servicel of `an attendant may be made unnecessary.

The invention will first be hereinafter more particularly described withreference to the accompanying drawings which torni a part of thisspecication and then pointed out in the claims at the yend oic thedescription.

In this specication and the annexed drawings, the invention is disclosedin the form which lit is considered to be the best, but the invention isnot limited to such form because it is capable of being embodied inother forms; and it is to be understood that in and by the claimsfollowing the description herein it is intended to cover the inventionin whatever form it may embody within the scopetherect In said drawingsFig. l is a side elevation ot the invention in its application,

Fig. 2 is a side elevation oipiftlie reading rack shown in Fig. l,

Fig. 3 is a similar view shcv-.fingthe reading rack adjusted to aVditl'erent or closed position,

Fig. 4e is a plan viewot the holding device for `the reading rack,

Fig. 5 illustrates a plan and side view,

respectively, Lot a modified forin oi holding device, l i 1 l Fig. 6 isaffront elevation ot the rack frame, f'

F 7 is a. lront elevation of' the main cabinet showing pivoted thereto afile cabinet and a swingable'arm .tor interchangeably carrying yorsupporting aftypewriter,

reading rack, inirror and the like devices,

Fio'. 8 is a similar to 3 alan view showino` tl 21h the typewriterstandy removed 'from the arrn and the lgigeon hole tile cabinet swunginto position extending over the bed,

Fig. 9 is a transverse sectional view of the `but l preferably provide acabinet having top section 4C. The cabinet 'immediately below the topsection l is provided at itsupper portion'fwith a compartment 0 for thereception of a water pitcher and urina-l or the like, and openings inthe front side ofthe cabinet sol as to be readily accessible to theinvalid. The compartment is closed by 'a pair oit' sliding doors 2 and3., as shown par-- ticularly in Figs. 7 and 9. rl`he remaining lbwerportion ot' the cabinet l may be made to provide a closet P with shelvesAtor books,

yhed-clothing., `or anything of a siinilarnature. This closet is'`closed by a door 30 `hinged on the rear or back face of cabinet l,

as clearly shown in Figs. 8 and9. l

rlhe top sections ot the cabinet is' provided in its lower portion witha relativelyv low horizontal extending compartment M,

extending substantially the length of.: the

top, for receiving` books, magazines and the vided with w shelf or bookrest 19, adapted like. The uoier fev-*ion the top section to pzeent sibook o. o'ihei' feeding mattei: 1'iesttedi,eveii e y@ ,on 1o veu'ipemenfrom eiipp' oi' the The reading); 13 suieblv divided 01' the receptionoi: ietmetier' is g ed upon he mok M and held ters, W1' g 't linposition by oleane of :i pair of bi'ickes and Sme-ll mi 1,

This compaitmen'- lo is hinged 'iiiiiicool H 15, one et @zich side o" W,mok, having iii,-

at n so that it may be swung to e position Wei-diy extending slotted orbifuieoted immediately over the bei by the use?T es mms 1G? adopted ioon upright side strips Sho i in F2 f1 "'hwlse mi each side of 'he lj. S,Wheeoy ie; is ooressible. @n the lofi; hemd pigeon iioie compartmentpoliment 3i which may ohe i'e'lepeleles cof Ubviousi v top eee port-m "oi oli'y doeii and ieoipifoceble theieon 'foi puiposeo desorbe. cross ermor bei L zii-oujh jeiu'os iii ratchet y, one on each 'biwoket :md havingSenseoL late h ov puwl e3.v pied ifoil with Yorhe-eeh on he Under ebieekeiis l5, whereby the reed- 1 ie heh? on the rock when in 'the Theoi'oef; ne einen book o11 feodheli? i9 and heide it die Kriek, and the:und flown ou l '1S of IA ed the neeee ow: :me ce 3rei"erab1y Construct'ne s 1- ehown the oiawiiiffe.

l pxefei eo empioy consiucton of the enti o device Adie. Some is morereadily and easily inoabie. The top Ese-@tion is eiightly lagei' in thenthe bodyo the cobiiea l L at the front and sides heeof an overhang ino;ledge 2Q undei which le mounted front iight oeuil comer :i hinged z dadopted to be 'og' mound oo hic the 6 in l Seme iifom 'View :informe-amthe ledge of 'the iop The sii'iiigabieeim 5 ie hinged aiJ ehe points Gund 17 to 'Le ooi-lief poll; of 'the Cabinet 8 attached bee Shown @im 5is designed 'io o 1l, table lO, or ii l changeable et 'the 'will of theuee picwed device. Fom *me above i K tion, it will be readily seenz'i-hat the w vfiieii Simmoovoi'f" oi' ovei 'the beii A Y is liv' wg ise haooj; po-

ingggnzinesf oi' "i have feiibie bowling. The rofl i? "il e hook 72, soas d? oui o? piaf/Ce 'fit e left.

oitiou e i or above devi/eea i i mi in The or s'ond 10, :is Shown inFilo". @WIR to Sew@ as D C?, is ofmsocted of bee poioi bovina;S'mgW-honk i 'wb o? the mok 1 the miek co 'foi-wm@ the top.

also 'provided Ye-ifi i to i'eoeive bed. hole 91 Leef its Y om 4T of thege of the book reci; is p30- L 1, ehm meh oel' Mai for engagement with apin f in a mortice or slot g in the lower end of a supporting post orupright 23, hinged at its top to the adjusting frame 20, and to whichone end of the chain 21-is attached. The mortice or slot at the centerinthe base of the supporting post or upright 23, is of size sulicientlylarge to permit the latch piece or ratchet member to move freely in themortice when manipulated. The lower end of the upright supporting post23 is turned down or .reduced to 'form a pin slight-ly smaller in sizethan the hole 9 ott the swingable arm 5.

In lieu of the construction of the brackets 15 and corresponding partsfor holding the reading matter open upon the rack, a pair of brackets 24as shown in Fig. 5 maybe employed.' The brackets 24 have inwardlyextended bifurcated `portions similar to thoseon the members 15, andalso adapted to fit on the upright strips extending lengthwise at eachside of the frame and reciprocable thereon. At right angles to theinwardly 'extending bifurcated portion on the members 24 are a pluralityof equidistantly spaced pairs of hooks 25 adapted to receive cross bar17 and hold the reading matter in place, in a `manner similar to the`preferred form of the ratchet mechanism 18.

In order to manipulate the various elements of this device, particularlyby those who are required to constantly lay in bed,

use is made of what isV termed an anchor stick 32, whichv is anyelongated rodl having hooks 33 at its opposite ends. The arm 5 isprovided with a corresponding hook or eye 34 in which one of the hooks33 may be engaged to bring the arm 5 in or out of position over the bed.Vhen the arm is in a position over the bed, as illustrated in Fig. 1, itmay be secured in this position by engaging one end of the anchor stickin eye 34 on the arm and the other end in an eye or hook 35 on thecabinet, as clearly illustrated.

When it is desired to usek the reading rack, the reduced end of thesupporting post 23 is inserted in the hole 9 of the swingable arm 5, andthe said arm is swung over the bed of the user and the book or readingmatter inserted between the rod 17 and the back of the rack 14. The rod17 is then moved into engagement with the reading matter and the pawlcarried at each end by the end members 18 engages a. notch in the underface of its bracket 15 to hold the rea-ding matter in place against theback of the rack. The rack will then be in a substantially perpendicularposition as shown in Fig. 3, however, by disengagmg the hook from thepin at the top of the device the said top can be tilted forward. Toadjust the degree of the tilt the bottom of the post 2O may be movedaway from the supporting post 23 so that the teeth on the mem- Bkr ber22engag'e thepm inv `thevslot inthe member 23.v To remove the rack .andfold the same the above operation need only be i reversed as myl readingrack Acan readily and with extremely great' facility be ad-A `justed tosuitfthe line ofvision and pleasure l of the individual using the same..i

In Fig. 1, I have shown a Swingable arm 26, similar to the arm' 5, aixedto the window'facing, adjacent the head of the bed, and carrying amirror 27 pivoted at each side in an inverted U-shaped frame28,'fsuspended from a slidable member 29 on thel arm 26. .This mirrorcan easily be turned and adjusted toany position, and by providing acord and weight arramgement.at-A

small chain attached to the other side of the arm 26. I provide a hookon Lthe desk which engages in the links of the chain to hold the mirror27 in any desiredposition and when the chain is released ther-.weightdraws the arm 26 carrying the mirror Y'27 to the oppositeV side .of thewindow ventirely out of vthe way. This arrangement l works periectly-yand easily and canbe adjusted to any desired position with thetip of'one finger and will stay in position until moved by the user. lItisextremely useful in connection with the typewriter asfeach character canbe paper. I

Instead of. the cabinet 1, about which the i various parts are pivotallymounted@y as. shown in 10, a` stand, having' a base` i portion'41and anadjustable upifigh-t-` body 42 and 43 havinga yflat top 40, may be`Aused.

lseen vas it appears onthe The adjustable Aparts comprise a. lower bodymember 42 having` ai hollow upper end and a spring pressed pawl 44mounted in bosses thereonV adapted to engage notches in an i,

upper or ratchet vmember 43. arm 45 similar tothe arm 5 is pivoted tothe upright body member 43 adjacent the under side of the top member 40.This arm`f45 has a hole adapted torecei-ve the supporting pin 46, of atable, reading rack or thelike -device. the arm 45, I provide a secondhole adapted.

to receive the reduced endor pinr 47o? a',

mirror supporting member`38`or the like.

The mirror shownin Fig. 10 is mounted` A swingable At a point near thepivotedzend'oi similar to that described Fig. 1, but instead of aswing-able "arm theV supporting Y* member or upright l38 is adapted toturn on the pin 47 in the hole in the arm 45.` @n

one end of the arm 26ev 'carrying the mirrorv i 12 is a hollow sleeve36, carrying a spring pressed pawl 37, adaptedv toengage in a notchedory toothed portion on the upper end of the member 38. it desired thearm t5 and parts supported therebvmie'ht be substituted for the arm 5 inthe preferred forn of the invention. ln the last mentioned constructionthe parts are susceptible of various ranges' of adjustment and thedevice may b-e found 'cheaper in construction and morel desirable insome cases thanthat of the preferred form of the invention.

Vhile l have found the foregoing as the most advantageous construction ldo not the bed5 the lower portion of the rcab ,t containing othercompartments., a gable arm rhingedly connected to a side portion of thecabinet to also swing over the bed. va reading' rack and a tablemember.r and means on said arm to interchangeably support said rack andtable member, and means for maintaining said arm in position over 'thebed.

2. In a device of the character described,` a book and paper supportcomprising a back frame, brackets connected to and independentlyvertically slidable alonfr the sides of' the frame and having yforwardlyextendinrr arms, a leaf holding; bar loosely supported bv said armsV andarranged to extend in the general direction of the lines of print, meanspermitting the rods to be adjusted along said varms toward and away fromthe frame for maintaining said bar inrontact with the book. s

3. ln a reading rack of the type described, the combination of a backframe, brackets slide-bly mounted on the sides ot said back frame andhaving forwardly extending arms, slides mounted on said arms, ay leafholdingf bar arranged to extend in the Igeneral direction of the linesof print and adapted to be loosely attached to said slides, ratchetandpawl mechanism between .said slides and arms, permitting adjustmentof the bar toward and away from said frame for maintaining said bar incontact with the pages of the book.

4. lin a reading rack of the type described, the combination of a post,a member suspended from the upper end of said post and mounted to swing`in vertical plane, means for adjusting said member vertically relativeto the post. book rest having' its lower end pivotally mounted on thelower end of said member7 and means for adjustablv securing' said bookrack in adjusted positions relative to said member.

5. ln a reading rack of the tvpe described.y book rest including a backframe against which reading matter may be placed.` brackets mounted onthe sides of the frame and independently adjustable therealono' a leafholdingr bar arranged to'extend in the general direction of the lines ofprint of thereadingmatter, and loosely* extending through said brackets,wherebj7 the rod is maintained in position to hold the book in place onsaid frame` and a stop means on one end of said rod to engage with thebracket, to prevent the accidental disengagement of the rod from the`bracket when the brackets are out of horizontal alignment.

ln testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand.

REUBEN'N. HARRISON.

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